Portable electric light



G. W. WACKER.

PORTABLE ELECTRIC LIGHT.

APPucmou min mm1. 191s.

Patented Aug. 5

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Hozuus UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE W. WACKER, OF RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO NATIONAL CARBON COMPANY, INC., 0F NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION 0F NEW YORK.

PORTABLE ELECTRIC LIGHT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 5, 1919.

Application filed March 7, 1918. Serial No. 220,890.

'o all Amlm/u, it may concern.'

Be it known that I, GEORGE W. WAGKER, a citizen of the United States, residin at Rutherford, county of Bergen, State of ew Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Portable Electric Lights, of which the following is a specification, rei"- erence being had therein to the accompanying drawings, forming part thereof.

My invention relates to self-contained or battery operated portable electric lights, and has for its object to eifect improvements in the construction of lights of this type employing a tubular battery-containing casing which at its forward end has a removable lamp or a removable lamp-carrying reflector. The rincipal object of my invention is to nrovide for retaining the battery in the casing without any danger of short-circuiting when the lamp or the lamp-carrying reflector is removed. As an example of a portable electric light of a kind to which the improvements of my invention are applicable, reference may be had to the patent to Conrad Hubert, No. 1,220,634 of March 27, 1917 for portable electric light. Other objects of my invention are inexpensiveness of manufacture, simplicity of construction, durability', reliability, and other objects and advantages which will hereinafter appear.

My invention includes various features of construction and combinations of parts, as will appear from the following description.

I shall now describe the portable electric light embodying my invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings and shall thereafter point out my invention in claims.

Figure 1 is a central longitudinal section with arts in elevation of a tubular portable e ectric light embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a similar view with the lampcarrying reflector removed.

Fig. 3 is a central longitudinal section on a plane indicated by the line 3--3 of Fig. 2 as viewed from below with the battery and end ca both removed.

In t e portablewelectric li ht embodying my inventlon illustrated in t e accompanying drawings a distinguishing feature is a battery-engaging hook 1 shown as of substantially semi-circular form and as projecting inwardly and rearwardly from the forward end of a sheet metal strip and as having a straight rearwardly extending shank part 2. Rearward from the hook 1 the shank 2 is shown as secured by means of a small tubular rivet-forming eyelet 3 to the inner side of a metallic circuit-completing' contact strip 4, and at its lower end the shank 2 and contact strip 4 are both secured by means of a longer rivet-forming eyelet 5 to the inner side of a tubular casing part (i shown as formed of insulatin material. Rearward from the rear end of t e shank 2 of the hook 1 the metallic contact strip 4 is rather sharply offset inwardly at 7 to provide a battery spacing part 8.

With the exception of the embodiment therein of the battery-engaging hook 1 and the inwardly offset battery spacing part 8, the construction of the portable electric light illustrated in the drawings is substantially of a usual construction and is of substantially the same construction disclosed in the above mentioned patent to Conrad Hubert, No. 1,220.634 of March 27, 1917, for portable electric light. The remainin cooperative parts of the portable electric light illustrated in the accompanying drawings will now be sufficiently described for the clear understandin of my present invention which is embo ied therein.

The contact strip 4 extends longitudinally within the casing tube 6, the rear end of this contact strip 4 is secured to the casing tube 6 by means of a rivet-forming eyelet 9, and the forward end of the contact strip 4, at the front of the battery-engaging hook 1, projects transversely inward at an outward inclination to form a contact-making resilient end part 10. The free outer circuit-completing or contact-making end 10 of the contact strip 4 in the construction illustrated in the drawin is engaged by the inner side of a metallic circuit-completing contact disk 11 which is held in place upon and supported by a removable metallic reector 12 by means of an inwardly and outwardly flanged metallic screw-threaded lamp socket 13, the contact disk 11 and lamp socket 13 belng electrically insulated from the metallic reector 12 by means of interposed 1nsulation shown as4 an insulating disk 14 and an insulating ring or washer 15. This construction for electrically insulatin the metallic contact disk 11 and meta ic lamp socket 13 from the metallic reflector 12 forms the subject of the patent to Conrad Hubert, No. 1,157 ,395 of Ostober 19, 1915, for portable electric hght, and

`to and shown in is also disclosed in the hercinbefore.nientioned patent to Conrad llubert, No. 1,220,631 of March 27, 1917, for portable electric light.

At itsl outer end the removable metallic reflector 12 is provided with a lslight peripheral flange which rests upon an inwardly turned annular flange formed on a usual screw-threaded end Vband 1G shown as secured upon the outer end of the non-con ducting casing tube by means of rivet forming eyelets 17, one of which Iappears in the drawings. The removable reflector 12 is held in place upon the easing tube (i by means of an end glass shown as a usual lensI 18, and the lens 18 is held in place by means of a usual end ring 19 screwed over the end band 16. A usual miniature incandescent. lamp has its terlninabforming base 2U screwed into the lamp socket 13 so that its central terminal 2l will be exposed at the inside ol the casing. and its bulb 22 will be exposed outwardly within the reflector 12.

'lhe inner or rear end of the casing tubr- (S is closed by means ot a usual end cap 23 screwed over an end ring 24 which is held in place upon the casing tube (i by means of rivet-forming eyelets 25, one ol which appears in the drawings. A battery-supporting coiled thrust spring 26 is carried by the end cap 23 at the inside thereof. A usual dry battery is contained within the battery-containing and lamp-carrying casing including the tubular non-conductive casing part 6, and this battery is shown as comprising two battery cells contained within a usual paper insulating tube 2T, and having zinc terminal-forming cups 28 and central carbon terminals 29. The exposed central terminal 29 at the outer end of the battery is pressed against the central termi nal 2l of the lamp by the battery-support ing thrust spring 26 which engages the rear end of the rearmost zinc cup 28, which forms the other terminal of the battery.

A metallic circuit-completing strip 30 `extends forward Within the casing tube 6 from the rear end rin 24 to a point adjacent li 3-as laterally spaced from the rear end cfg the contact strip lil, and this circuit-completingstrip 30 is'aidapted to be electrically connected tolthe contact strip 4 by any suitable circuit-controlling means, and thecircuit controller shown the drawings and now to be briefly vdescribed is substantially the same aslt'hat disclosed in and forming the subject of the hereinbefore mentioned atentffto Conrad Hubert, No 1,220,634 o March27, T1917, for'pertable electrielight'. A metallic contact box V31de "held in place'uponf the outer side'of thehunoonductive tubular casing part 6 by means of a air'of similar rivetlformilng eyelets 32 an 332 of which* the ey'elet 38m-lso holds in iAplace' 'the forward f of the circuit-conpleting' strip 250, as appears in Fig. 3. The contact box l has therein a contact spring 84 secured in place at one end thereof by means of a rivet 35 and at its other end provided with a. push button 15G projecting at its outer rounded end to the outside of the contact box 1:51, and at its inner end adapted to be brought into circuitclosing engagement with the outer end of. a Contact prong 237, shown as termed on the contact strip fl, and projecting through an opening 38 to the outside olE the casing tube (3 within the contact box 31. The push button 36 is also adapted to be operated by .means of a slide 89 mounted upon the contact box 3l.

It is to be noted that when the central terminal 29 of the forward battery cell is in contact with the central terminal 21 of the lamp, by reasoil of the forward thrust of the battery-supporting spring 26, the upper end ol", the outer battery cell is spaced backward from and out of contact with the adjacent end ot' the inwardly and rearwardly turned battery-engaging hook l` thereby assuring virenit-coinpleting connection with the central terminal 2l of the lamp, as will bc readily understood. However, should the forward end ring 19 be removed for any purpose, for example, for renewing the lamp, which in the construction illustrated in the drawings is acomplished by removing the removable lamp-carrying reflector 12, then the battery will be pushed forward by the thrust spring 26 until the forward end ot the outer battery cell is engaged by the hook l. the rearwardly turned end of which comes into contact with the usual insulating material 40, which is commonly ordinary sealing wax, contained within the outer end of the zinc cup 28 and surrounding the outer projecting end of the carbon electrode rod 29. The material of which the hook 1 is formed is sufficiently rigid thus to hold the battery against the thrust of the coiled spring 26, butthe material forming the oontact strip 4 is more flexible so that the inwardly projecting contacbmaliing end part 10 thereof is adapted to make a resilient contact with the hereinbetore mentioned contact disk 11, under the pressure oftwhich it is adapted to yield slightly inward, as will be clear from a comparison of Figs. 1 and 2.

The engagement of the end of the hook `l with the insulating material 40 of the forward battery Cell prevents the outer edge et the zinc cup 28 from being pushed into contact with the inwardly projectingcontacta making end 10 of the contact strip 'Alby-the thrust spring` 26, ithaving'been foundin practice that the upper edge of the cellv containing'paper-tube or carton 27 usually will not ofle'r any substantial protection in this respect, endif the edge of` the zinc vcup '28 were to come into'contactwththecontact-making end part 10 then the battery, or at least the rear cell thereof would be sho-rtcircuited through the connections lnn'einbelorc (.lescribed. Also in a construction in which the contact-making cud part 1U ol' the contact strip i is omitted, the battery-engaging hook l will prevent the battery from dropping ont of the forward end of thc casingitube G when the lamp-carrying' reflector l2 is rcnioved and will accomplish this result without producing a shortcircuit of the battery.

It has been found in practice that the ends or edges of the paper carton tube 27 often V beconic more or less mutilated so as to eX- pose more or lessI of the ends of the terminal-forming zincl cups 28 of theI battery. However, ordinarily this mutilation will extend in only a comparatively Short distance from the ends or edges of the paper tube 27. ln such casca of the mutilation of the paper tube 27 it has been found in practice that not only`r will a short-circuit of the battery be produced when the lamp-carrying rclicf'tor is removed, as aboveJ described, but that also thc upper exposed side part of the forward Zinc battery cup 28 is liable to come into circuit-completing contact with the adjacent side of a usual metallic contact strip, such for example as the contact strip 4, and thereby produce a short-circuit of the battery even while the lamli-carrying reiector 12 and lamp are in place. In order to prevent the possibilit;7 of such a. shortcircuit being formed I have provided the hcreinbefore described inwardly offset part 8 upon the contact strip 4 which engages the side of the paper tube 27 at a point some distance inward from the outer end thereof, and inward beyond where any usual mutilation of the paper tube :27 at its upper edge would extend. This inwardly offset batteryspacing part 8 of the Contact strip 4 therefore will eifectually prevent the contact of the side of the zinc cup 28 with an adjacent ntallic part, for example, in the construction illustrated in the drawings with the adjacent inner surface of the shank 2 of the battery-engaging hook 1 or with the rivetforming eyelets 3 and 5 should the adjacent upper end part of the paper tube 27 be mutilated or torn away so as to expose the outer surface of the zinc battery cup 28.

It is obvious that various modifications may be made in the construction shown in the drawings and above particularly described within the principle and scope of my invention.

I claim:

1. A portable electric light having, in combination, a battery-containing and lampcarryingl easing, and a circuit completing contact strip mounted on the casing at the inside thereof and provided with means engageable with the forward end of the batlery and also with meansennageable willi the side of the battery inward from the forward end thereof, both of such means being adapted to prevent the electrical connection of the upper part ol the zine battery cup with said riinuit-completing contact strip.

2. A portable electric light having', in combination, a battery-containing and lampcarryingr casing part, and a circlIit-coniplctintl,f contact strip at the inside of said casing.; part and urovided with an inwardly turned part engageable with the forward end of the battery inward from the zinc cup thereof for limiting' the forward movement of thc battery and adapted to prevent the contact of the upper part of the zinc cup with said circuit-completing; contact strip.

3. A portable electric light having, in combination, a battery-containing and lampcarrying casing part, and a circuit-completing contact strip carried by said casing part at. the inside thereof and turned inward at its forward contact-making end, said contact strip also being provided with an inwardly projecting part adapted to engage with the forward end of the battery inward from the zinc cup thereof for thereby preventing the contact of the upper edge of the zinc cup with the inwardly turned contact-making end of said circuit-completing Contact strip.

4. The invention claimed in claim 3 in which said circuit-completiinq` contact strip is further provided inward from the outer end of the battery with a laterally orojecting part engageable with the side of the battery for preventing the contact of the upper part of the zinc cup with the adjacent part of said contact strip.

5. A portable electric light having, in combination` a tubular battery-containing and lamp-carrying casing adapted to support a miniature incandescent lamp with its central terminal exposed within the casing at the forward end thereof, a batterysupporting spring at the rear end of the casing adapted to push the battery forward with its central terminal in contact with the central terminal of the lamp, and a circuitcompleting contact strip carried by said tubular casing at the inside thereof and having at its forward end an inwardly turned contact-making end part, said contact strip being' provided with an inwardly extending;r part at the front of the forward end of the battery and normally out of contact therewith but adapted when the lamp is removed to engage the forward end of the battery inward from the zinc cup thereof.

6. The invention claim-ed in claim 5 in 125 which said circuit-completing contact strip is further provided with a projecting part for engaging the side of the battery inward from the outer end thereof.

7. A portable electric light having, in

combination, n tubular casingr part, a removable, lamp-carrying reflector at the forward end of said easing part and arranged to expose the ventral terminal of the lamp at the inside of said easing part, a closure Vl'or the rear end of said easing part, a battery-supporting thrust spring acting between said closure and the rear end of a battery for maintaining the central terminal ol the lnittery in contact with the central terminal of the lamp, and a circuit-completingr contnet strip within said tubular casingr part provided at its forward end with an inwardly turned hook normally out of contact with the forward end of the battery but adapted when the said lamp-carrying reflector is removed to engage with the insulating' material of the forward end of the battery inward from the upper edge of l'lnA '/.inc cup thereo'l for thereby limiting the forward movement of the battery without making sont-nel with said zinc cup.

"l. The invention claimed in claim 7 in which Suid contact strip is o'set inwardly rearward from thc hook and from the foi ward edge of the battery for thereby spacin, r the upper end of the battery from the adajcent part of said contact strip.

9. The invention claimed in claim 7 in which said circuit-completing Contact strip is further provided outwardly from said battery-engaging hook with an inwardly projecting contact-making end part.

10. The invention claimed in elaini 8 in which said eircnit-completing contact strip is: further provided outwardly from said battery-engaging hook with an inwardly projecting contact-making end part.

1l. A ortable electric light having, in con'lbinatlon, a tubular casing part of in- Idating material, and a circuit-completing ontact strip extending longitudinally within and secured to Said casing tube and provided With an inwardly projecting part normally out of contact with but adapted to engage with the insulating material of the forward end of the battery for limiting the forward movement of the battery in the easing tube.

12. The invention claimed in claim 11 in which said circuit-completing contact strip is provided with an inwardly rejecting contact-making end forwardly rom said battery-engaging part.

13. The invention claimed in claim l2 in which said inwardly projecting battery-engaging part is in the form of a hook.

14. The invention claimed in claim 13 in which said hook-forming part is a separate piece of metal secured to said circuit-oompleting part, the batteryengaging hook being comparatively rigid and the contactmaking end part being mo-re HeXible.

In testimony whereof I have allixed my signature to this specification.

GEORGE W. WA'CKER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

